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I feel so stupid!!

I’ve tried like three times to eat raw with no luck the longest i’ve gone is 4 days! its so hard especially when you have to cook food for someone else! UGH! Any suggestions on sticking with it? I feel like its a lost cause…its also frustrating that in order to get nuts i’m going to have to buy them online. UGH, you guys are so amazing, i just can’t do it.

Comments

  • SuzicalSuzical Raw Newbie

    Sure you can – just phase in slowly. Eat some cooked food, but see if you can incorporate one or two green smoothies into your daily regime. Beyond the food prep for others, the smoothies will be something you’ll do just for you.

    Lots of great recipes on this site so that you can experiment and get your very own favorite going.

    Once you start with that, it should be easier and easier to transition. Green smoothies are just THE LOVE, plain and simple.

    Good Luck!

  • Blue_EyesBlue_Eyes Raw Master

    Dont feel so bad. I am having a hard time also. I have been trying for months to go 100% but 50 50 is about as good as I get sometimes. It is interesting to try new things I get bored real easy with food. But dont give up and most of all don’t be hard on yourself. just remember you want to do something great for your body, and when you eat something cooked just try to enjoy it without the guilt. I don’t always have to cook for someone my husband is a semi driver but the people I work with are in love with food. just bring in food and they are like sharks in a feeding frenzie. So I guess I can relate as far as there always being cooked food around. So just try to be easy on yourself and let things flow naturally. and if it is really something you want it will come. This site has really helped me everyone is so helpful and reading thru the forums you learn so much. So hang in there and good luck. Maybe we could help each other get better at this!!

  • you should check out Natalie Rose’s book The Raw Food Diet Detox (I think that is the correct title – but you should be able to find it with that). It is a great book for people transitioning. She even gives tons of sample menus for people who are ‘a little raw’ and then ’ a little more raw.’ Do not come down hard on yourself. Keeping 100% takes – for many of us – a tremendous lifestyle adjustment and is just not practical/possible for most. I was able to do it for about 4 months, but as soon as I got in a serious relationship (where we eat out a lot), I dropped back down to about 80% raw. I still feel healthy and great. There are so many benefits to a properly varied raw vegan diet, and you do not have to be 100% to get a lot of those benefits.

  • I have read that fruits are the fastest food to digest. In this same article I was reading it stated that you should start switching to raw by eating fruit about 30min before you eat your cooked meal. The reason is that by the time you eat your cooked meal your fruit is already out of your tummy moving on to the next track of its journey, so you don’t have to worry about combining issues. ALSO, by doing this you are making it so you wont have to eat as much cooked food to fill you up. It’s kind of a training to get you ready for your beautiful make over. I never tried this, I was fortunate enough to go with it (well I was 80% raw for a month or two).

    Also, try eating juicy fruits for breakfast. When you wake up your body is still half asleep, which makes it harder to digest. You don’t want a heavy breakfast because your body is going to work extra hard to digest. Every morning I eat fruit for breakfast. I LOVE FRUIT. Since I went raw, fruit is sooo gourmet to me. My taste buds have intensified, causing a reaction of pure euphoria when I eat foods! Also check out www.howtogoraw.com . Rodger Haske trained under Dr. Douglas Graham and has a lot of good ways to transition. That is where I got the above information.

    I wish you luck! You can do it this time, just be patient. It’s okay to take 3 steps forward and two steps back, you still moved forward!

  • Blue_EyesBlue_Eyes Raw Master

    TreeOfLife thank you that sounds like a great idea. I have been doing alot of smoothies for breakfast but I think that may help in the rest of the day. My biggest hurdle is Lunch because I am surrounded by people wanting me to eat with them. It is social time. Most restrauats have fruit cups of some kind so I will start with those. I have tried to bring my lunch and just have tea with them and eat while I work but I give in to temptation so easy. I did the 10 day master cleanse hoping it would curb my cravings but no I still want bad food. even though I know how bad it is for me.

  • Blue Eyes It’s an addiction. Don’t feel bad. Mind over body. Your body is just craving these foods because it has been recieving it for all of those years, now it is yelling at you “WHERE IS MY HIGH FRUCTOSE? WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO MY GREASE?” Don’t give in. You can do this! Same with everyone else. You guys can all do this. Once you get over your hump, your body wont even want those foods. Not even the littlest bit. Yes, they may look pretty; but I would way wrather bite into a nice juicy plum, peach, or enjoy a whole cantoloupe(Which I think look way better than a plate of fries). Your tastebuds and mind will change once you give it a chance to. Take it slow, do what’s best for you!

  • You don’t have to be 100% Raw instantly, try to transition slowly, any raw percentage is better than no raw at all. You can receive huge benefits even by being 70-80% raw. Also, you don’t need to cook gourmet food if you don’t have the time, try to stick to simple things, fruits, salads, seeds, nuts etc… OR you could transition first to a cooked diet but free of processed foods, sugar, refined flours, fried foods, fast foods etc..and then after few months of a healthy cooked diet switch to raw.

  • bittbitt Raw Newbie

    honestly i think even nuts at a store that are questionable are better than cooked food. any steaming or blanching is less than cooked food goes through. don’t let that deter you. i am traveling and I have to make these choices.

  • missbettie i am in the same boat for sure.. i miss the warm and fuzzies in my tummy. over the past couple days though, i have noticed i have been craving cooked stuff a little bit less, and i think thats at least in part thanks to trying to snack constantly. ive been trying to start the morning with a green smoothie which seems to hold me over for quite awhile.. when i leave the house i make sure my bag is jam packed with fruit.. its so heavy leaving for work! but by the end of the day it feels great. i really love baking and still have a ton of ingredients kicking around my house i cant bare to just throw out.. so i baked a load of cupcakes for some coworkers over the weekend. honestly, in my head i had sort of decided i was allowed to eat 1 cupcake.. but by the end of it i was just satisfied with having done my baking.. and was content with eating my cherries instead. i figured vegan wheat/sugar free cupcakes (not that i told them thats what they were) certainly werent the worst thing my coworkers could have been eating.. and i didnt have to waste my ingredients..

    anyway.. where was i going with this? oh yes. stick with it.. and maybe you will be able to find pleasure in cooking for others and uncooking for yourself.. and maybe over time incorporating more raw foods into the diets of those you are cooking for will help make your transition easier.

    remember that you are making a huge life change! and be happy for the fact you are making steps for yourself, the environment.. whatever your reasons.. knowing you are the least bit conscious is more important than anything.. because you know exactly what you are choosing to put into your body. you are doing a good job and it wont happen over night! ive been vegan for 9 years and often times found those that werent vegan to be of the most support.. having a bunch of vegans constantly policing your choices and wagging their fingers at you shouldnt be what making choices for yourself is all about. so dont put so much pressure on yourself right from the get go and respect the fact you are doing an awesome job!

    at least.. i think that is what i think i would like to hear.. and should be telling myself when i get angry from straying from raw.

  • penfoldpenfold Raw Newbie

    I like what bitt and DagnyTaggert say above. Along those lines, try to keep your cooked food lightly cooked and vegan. If even that’s hard, maybe accept one heavily cooked, so not what you’re aiming for food a day, just for now – don’t even think about it, worry, feel guilty, etc. But keep it at one, and work on replacing it with something better. I find that I try really hard to stay away from raw “junk food,” but sometimes being too strict with myself leads me to eat cooked. It’s good to remember that eating too many nuts or something is still probably better than whatever cooked food you might end up indulging in. Hope some of that helps.

  • ZoeZoe Raw Newbie

    I think a good way to start is to get the green smoothies in there, like you already are. And while you are still eating cooked food, first quit processed food – anything in a box, bag or can. Then quite meat and fish, and when you are on a level with that, quit wheat, and then finally dairy and eggs. Whilst you are going through these steps, increase the amount of raw. It may take 3-5 years to complete those steps, but who cares? It is a solid way to do it, and letting go of these things one by one is easier than letting go of everything all at once! It will also mean that your detox will be long, slow and easy on you.

    Good Luck and take it easy on yourself!!

    Oh I just clicked on your profile ad I see you are already vegan – hooray! So just quite processed/box/bag/mircowaved food, and then wheat, and then slowly increase your intake of raw food. Don’t try to go 100% overnight if it is hard for you. There are so many ways of going raw, only very few people go 100% overnight ;)

  • drgonflydrgonfly Raw Newbie

    Hey missbettie, I totally sympathize. I cook for my husband who is not raw & I slip at times just because of the smell of the food…which is so frustrating! And then I get, well you ate cooked food yesterday or last week, why won’t you now? It seems like once you eat something cooked you crave it more. I’m trying more smoothies. And I can’t ask my husband to cook for himself because he has a super physical job and comes home after 12 hours totally exhausted.

    You aren’t alone in your struggle, this site gives me lots of encouragement to keep going forward, no matter how small, because my health physically, emotionally & mentally is worth it!

  • thanks for all the encouragement guys i really appreciate it!! I am vegan already for about a year and a half so i suppose its a step in the right direction. I just love cooked food, i love bagels, pasta, toast, burritos…gah it sucks…i’m going to try my best but its so hard to not get down on myself when i fail. but thank you so much guys you have no idea what it means to me. <3>

  • troublesjustabubbletroublesjustabubble Raw Newbie

    I also cook for my husband and I love it! I just eat something before I start cooking and then while his food is being prepared I whip up a quick salad or something so we can eat together. I may just like it because I have always loved cooking and it’s my creative outlet. But good luck! It can be really awesome

  • ZoeZoe Raw Newbie

    It is tough coz cooked food is an addiction and wheat/yeast based products are the worst addictive foods there are. Did you know there is MSG in all yeast/wheat based products? That is why we find them so hard to give up. But once you do, it is pretty easy to stay off them. Especially wheat, it causes so many physical problems that when you quit you just wouldn’t want to go back on to them!

  • angie207angie207 Raw Master

    Wheat doesn’t cause the same problems for everyone. I’ve heard a lot of people say wheat is bad for you, don’t eat it, etc. but I had not eaten wheat for a long time, and I felt I was missing something in my diet. I started using sprouted wheat, and I feel the balance is there now that was missing before. This was not an addiction, because I had eaten little or no wheat for almost three years, and after I had eaten some wheat, then I didn’t care to have any for a few weeks, and then I ate it again, etc. I don’t get the same kinds of cravings for it as I used to when I was addicted to things that are bad for me.

  • drgonflydrgonfly Raw Newbie

    Thank you so much Zoe! I was having a hard time figuring out exactly what triggered the “cooked food” cycle. I’m staying well away from that stuff & even tossing my glutten free bread away.

  • WinonaWinona Raw Newbie

    drgonfly – How are you doing this week?

  • drgonflydrgonfly Raw Newbie

    Hi Winona! I am doing better, but only because we had company & they brought up food so I didn’t have to cook for my husband! (smile). And I feel so much better too, thanks for asking. I seem to get in a cycle where I’ll be good for so long & then something I make for my husband smells so good I have it & then feel like crap for a couple of days getting it out of my system. Staying away from yeast has helped.

    Thank you so much for asking! I love this raw community. Even though I don’t get to spend alot of time contributing or asking, this is my support group to better health. I have no one else I can learn about being raw from or support.

    Wind to your wings!

  • I have been 75% raw for a few weeks. I have a husband and 2 kids. I feel like I spend a lot of time through the day soaking nuts, thinking about what to make and shopping. I make the kids a seperate dinner (they mostly ate something different than my husband and me before raw) and a raw dinner for me and my husband. He eats some raw but also eats something cooked (he thinks he would starve if all raw but I am never hungry). Some nights and I try a recipe and other nights just a big salad. I have brought raw food like cookies, almond butter and jam sandwich and some fruit to get togethers. I have not dealt with a sit down dinner with family yet. I find it easiest to have a smoothie at lunch and a salad at dinner. They are mostly the same as they were before raw and taste good. I have taken new flavors more slowly. I added a kale leaf to my smoothie today and will try more greens slowly.

  • Hi Missbettie! I have not had a chance to read through all the advice and encouragement that everyone else gave, so hopefully I’m not repeating something that’s already been said. But I want you to know that you have my support.

    The fact that you are conscious about your health and at least TRYING to go all raw speaks volumes. The green smoothies that Suzical suggested is excellent advice. It will train your palate to like the taste of green leafy vegetables. The most important thing you should focus on is your health and not just meeting a standard. When you focus on adding at least one raw meal or green smoothie each day to your diet, you’ll know that you’ve given yourself a host of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and enzymes. Those enzymes in raw food are what are going to help your body repair and fight off disease and premature aging. May I also suggest juicing! You can get in a ton of raw vegetables for the day and get it over with, and your body absorbs about 92% of the nutrients as opposed to losing them in digestion. The cells just pick them right up!

    You should feel good about what you are doing for yourself! I can think of worse things that you could be doing to your body besides eating a little cooked food here and there. ;-) It takes at least 3 weeks of consistently doing something (sometimes longer)to break a habit and only 1 week to form a new habit. Imagine all the habits we’ve formed in a lifetime! Pick one thing to add or take away every 3 weeks…a salad each day for the 1st 3 weeks, plus 1 green smoothie each morning for the next 3 weeks, plus 1 raw side dish added to dinner every night for the next 3 weeks, eliminate (poisonous) table salt gradually for the next 3 weeks etc, etc. Remember, there are other things you can concentrate on to improve your health like getting enough fiber, or drinking enough water. You’ll be surprised how much you’ll accomplish at the end of the year!

    I wish you the best…don’t give up! You’ve come so far! If at first you don’t succeed, pick yourself up and try again. ;-)

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